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Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Harlan & Weaver

MynameisIsabelRosen-­‐HamiltonandIamgoingintomyjunioryearasa printmaking major after spending the
summer studio assisting at the print shop Harlan & Weaver located
in New
York City. I discovered this particular studio through researching artists that I am
interested in such as Louise Bourgeois, Kiki
Smith and James Sienna. Discovering that Harlan & Weaver has printed most
of these artists’ work, aswellas others, I began
researching the studio
itself. Established in 1985in its
still original location
on CanalStreet, I waspleased to find out that, not only in my
hometown,they were
ina very familiar neighborhood in which I had spent much of my childhood.
Through a family member to an old family friend, I made an appointment to visit the
shop and meet with Felix Harlan and Carol
Weaver,
the original owners
and printers.

The studio focuses on specifically Intaglio printmaking, which includes
etchinganddrypoint,aquatint,sugarliftandspit-­‐bitetechniques.Havingprevious knowledgewiththese
processes, I felt readytouse
what I knew tobringmy
printing and myself to a more confident level. As a studio assistant,
I was oftenmanning the job of
the“clean hands person”.
While printing,I wasin charge withhandlingall paper, from soaking it to moving
it to a plastic wrapper to keep it moist to placing and removing sheets from
the press itself. However, I had lots of
responsibilities before
any actual printing was to commence. I mixed batches of ink, set up the press withthe proper
pressure and blankets intact and to make sure everything that wouldbeneeded
was stocked andwithin reach of
the work area.

Throughoutthe summer, I
found Carol and Felix to be extremely informal and supportive. Not only would they explain a task to
me before expecting me to follow
through, they would explain all theinner
workings of each
aspect or process of working inthe
studio.
Although many of the things I learned were things I already knew, but the most
important part of my time at Harlan & Weaver was that I was taught how to
perform at a professional level in the studio. Whether assisting in another
print shop or when producing my own work, I will alwaysthink back to how Carol properlywrappedand packageda print
after
it was sold or how I watched Felix meticulously hand
wiped each plate countless times.